This recipe was inspired by the cute Japanese strawberry milk drinks, which feature fresh strawberries and milk. Visually satisfying in its simplicity. However, I wanted to do a few things to take that simple idea of fresh strawberry milk, and make it a little more fun. The first thing I did differently was instead of using straight up fresh strawberries, I macerated them with sugar Macerating the strawberries makes sure that the drink tastes a little more sweet, but also to soften the strawberries so that they are more drink-able with a straw. The sugar mixes with the berries, pulling out their juices and leaving them to swim in this strawberry-flavored syrup – Le Cirque in New York referred to that liquid as a consomme, which is a flavorful but clear broth or stock, which I guess works here too. I love macerating fruits, just because it is an easy way to pull out more of their flavor, and with that maceration liquid, you can make all kinds of fun things, or just you know, drink it with milk and matcha. For the milk, I went with goat milk, mostly because I love the tang of that against matcha and berries, but you can use regular milk, or even non-dairy milk too! The combination of strawberries and goat milk is one I personally love – goat cheese, which has a similar flavor to goat milk, is something I pair with strawberries from time to time.

To balance the tang, creaminess, and sweetness from everything else, I’m topping all of that with matcha foam, which adds a lightness and bitterness(like my soul). The matcha cold foam, which is inspired from the cold foams you’d see in a lot of sweet cream cold drinks from Starbucks, is basically just a whipped cream that has simple syrup and milk in there to loosen it, and in this case, matcha to add that bright, grassy green color and floral flavor! What is cool about pairing goat milk with green tea is that the tang from goat milk opens your palate, and gives the green tea this more mellow and pleasant aroma to it. Pair that with strawberries that have been macerated, and therefore devoid of any overt sourness, and you have a pretty fun beverage on your hands, which a gorgeous color gradient. Beside the drink sort of looking like the upside-down flag of Hungary, it is one that I personally enjoy, just because it has dessert-like qualities to it, and I am definitely known for having a sweet tooth.

For the macerated strawberries:
1/4 cup strawberries, hulled and quartered
2 tbsp granulated sugar
a pinch of salt
1/4 tsp vanilla extract

Stir everything together in a bowl until the strawberries are all coated in the sugar. Cover the bowl with cling wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

For the matcha cold foam:
1 tsp ceremonial matcha
a pinch of salt
1 tsp granulated sugar
2 tbsp warm water
2 tbsp heavy cream
1 tbsp goat milk

In a bowl, whisk together the ceremonial matcha, salt, sugar, and warm water, until the matcha is fully dissolved into the liquid. Add to it the other ingredients and whisk until combined and slightly thickened. Keep cold until time to assemble.

To assemble:
Fresh goat’s milk

In a cup, lay down the macerated strawberries first. Then pour over that the goat’s milk, filling the cup about 3/4 the way full between the strawberries and the goat milk. Cover the top of the drink with the matcha cold foam to finish.